We are in week two of our Costa Rica adventure, now staying in the Monteverde area of Santa Elena, surrounded by cloud forest sights and sounds.
I don’t recall how or why we chose Los Pinos to land our weary feet, but we both agree we found a gem of a place to stay. Let’s begin with history. Family history!
The patriarch of the family, Rafael Arguedas Herrera, was the owner and willed the land to his sons in the 1960’s. One of the sons, Jovino, bought the land from his brothers and later created a dairy farm. From 1976 to 1987, Jovino and his wife, Leyla, ran a local dairy farm and raised their three children: Lorena, Rafael, Gloriana, and Jeffry.
In 1987, the family built the first guest cabin, intended to be for family and friends that visited and occasionally to other local hotel companies as overflow. Soon afterwards in 1989, tourism was catching on in Monteverde and the family made the choice to sell another dairy farm they owned. In 1990, with the proceeds from that sale, they began to build more cabins. Presently the property features 16 cabins, a hydroponic garden greenhouse, private reserve with about 1,000 meters of trails with varied topographies. The greenhouse was the idea of a family friend that needed the land. The family agreed to a cooperative and now the farmer maintains the greenhouse.
What I found the most appealing is the family’s mission and vision: their commitment to ecotourism and sustainability in how they manage and care for their property, which is the way of life in this region. The Arguedas family and Los Pinos are involved in several national initiatives such as a Certification for Sustainable Tourism, Code of Conduct, Ecological Blue Flag, Seal of Sanitary Quality, National Chamber of Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism, Bellbird Biological Corridor, Monteverde Community Fund.
As far as I am concerned, this is beyond admirable. This is inspirational! Adios!
Twitter @LosPinosCR Website http://www.lospinos.net/
To see more photos of our adventure, please go to my Instagram @lauriebidaho
#BestSpot #CloudForest #Ecotourism #LosPinos
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